Lets talk about immigration.

[steveL]

Was Foster a politician?

[beanzontoast]

Many thanks for the book title SA I will have a look at this, and it is as I thought you have a firm grasp of the goings on isn`t politics great

And of course the rabbit hole goes much deeper.

UKIP are the only party to be making a difference, they at least are bouncing the government towards a referendum on Europe at least some are not sleepwalking into servitude.

[mk1]

There is a school of thought that whoever is in Government, the same people remain in power - and none of them are elected.

It is the way.
I smile when I see UKIP claiming it will change everything. That is what they all say and I have not yet seen an example  where this  cleaning up  of the political game ever happened.

[fred c]

I never liked him, & "The Mob" saw fit to award him the Freedom of the Borough.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2324112/Immigrants-We-sent-search-parties-to-come--hard-Britons-work-says-Mandelson.html

[grim reaper]

Fred, Mandelson's remarks just go to show what a disingenuous collection of scum the last Labour party was. 
They all knew damn well what opening the flood gates would do to the UK workforce...and now they admit it, AND the real reason WHY they did it...to snipe at the Tory party.     
What with those chancers in Whitehall wanting another chance at the trough of plenty and those chancers in HBC continuing with impunity in the trough (at the moment), how can anyone say they are a viable party to govern this country and this town?
Why don't the communist party members in Labour and the unions bugger off to Russia, North Korea or Cuba and practice their 'Red Flag' to their hearts content?   
                        And people have the temerity to mock UKIP.

[for fawkes sake]

A creepy man who couldn't even fall straight if he fell off a cliff.

[grim reaper]

KD, I wasn't going to respond in any way to his stupid assertion but as you intimated that I might;
I don't know you either, other than from this site.
There are a number of people on this site I don't give the time of day for, therefore I only half read their crap and certainly do not respond. 
Short sighted? Not willing to interact? 
Nah. Some people are so ingrained in their way of thinking...and how they think other people should think, that I leave them to it. 
Why waste time on nonentities?
That said, there are some good posters on here and I do wish David would switch career from teacher to throw his hat in the ring as Hartlepool MP!!

Oh yes, from the many 'slights' aimed at you, it is obvious you are something to do with UKIP.
If I keep hearing good things about the party, I may cross from Tory to UKIP. I'm going away for a few days so have fun on here.

[DRiddle]

Why waste time on nonentities?
That said, there are some good posters on here and I do wish David would switch career from teacher to throw his hat in the ring as Hartlepool MP!!

Do you mean me? I'm not sure i'd be cut out for life in Westminster Village. I like working too much.

I think I could help out at local level though. In fact, i'm pretty confident I could. I'd say a sharp mind and a decent chartered accountant could shave £15 million quid in wastage from HBC in a heartbeat. Ironically, starting WITH 'Heartbeat'.... 

[DRiddle]

Ah, this just shows you don't understand Public Sector finanance. Hartbeat does not cost anything to produce, it is fully self funding through advertising. OK, most of the advertising is paid for by other council departments but that's just a detail. As a stand alone cost centre Hartbeat probably makes a profit!

Mr Allison sir, rest assured I know of you, your career and you stint within HBC. As a former public sector worker technically employed by HBC, i understand the nature if how Heartbeat is funded.

Schools, CIC's, charities, radio stations etc are funded, and then 'asked' to buy advertising space in a publication that goes to 40,000+ households... right?

The cost of said advertising space is essentially a 'tax' on their funding. That's how i saw it anyway.

Like you, (i'm guessing) I see HBC as a bit of a joke due to the following:

(1) People with no experience of managing big budgets find themselves 'in charge' of hundreds of thousands, if not MILLIONS, of pounds.
(2) People with no 'outside the box' thinking, find themselves in charge of £50 million quid + in a town crying out for innovative thinking.
(3) People who would struggle to earn 15k plus in the real world find themselves earning 40k plus in HBC's fantasy world for doing little or nothing.
(4) The red tape and layers of beaurocracy frustrated you beyond belief. (As it would me).
(5) You were/would be embarrassed to be classed in the same way (as a 'councilllor') as people who in the real world are not fit to lace your boots.

Am I right?

I play a key role in managing 900+ staff, have direct control of a 7 figure budget and contibute to an organisation with a turnover wwwaaaayyyy into 8 figures annually. From what i hear... you did/do too. Would I be comfortable working with people who outside of HBC would do well to be earning minimum wage...... nope. 

As I suspect, neither would you.

For what it's worth, i hope you stand in 2014 under the PHF banner. We could do a lot worse... well, lets face it.... we are currently.

[DRiddle]

Fair enough Stephen. That's pretty much what limits my involvement. I do ok in what I do, I enjoy it, i'm proud to do it. Do I want/need to enter the 'snake pit'.... probably not. 

[Lord Elpus]

Steve's comments re the snake pit are very true, in normal life one rarely has to associate with people who are as self serving, two faced, nasty, vindictive and petty as one encounters on a daily basis in politics. 

Within the snake pit you will be lucky to have any true friends and unfortunately you'll probably see the worse of people (your fellow Councillors) on a daily basis. 

Conversely you'll work with some great officers who do their best sometimes against the political interference of a handful of control freaks who have no life outside of the political bubble they have immersed themselves in.